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GOP centrist Brian Fitzpatrick dramatically stepped up his public battle against Republican leadership this morning as he signed onto a Democratic effort to force a vote on extending soon-to-expire enhanced Obamacare subsidies.

Fitzpatrick has strongly criticized the Democrats’ three year extension, which he says does nothing to reform the costly pandemic-era program, such as enforce stricter income limits.

But in a sign of desperation for the normally leadership-aligned GOP congressman, Fitzpatrick chose to defy Speaker Mike Johnson and sign onto Democrats’ push. The Pennsylvania Republican is the first lawmaker from his party to sign onto the measure, which now needs just three more Republicans to force a floor vote under the discharge petition rules.

The move will immediately ramp up pressure on other GOP centrists who intentionally did not rule out signing the Democratic petition as they tried to hardball their own leadership into allowing a compromise measure to extend and reform the subsidies to come to the floor. That effort failed on Tuesday, triggering Fitzpatrick’s move.

Republicans, including Reps. Mike Lawler of New York and Kevin Kiley of California, will now need to decide if they too will sign onto the position.

Fitzpatrick telegraphed his move in a late night meeting of the House Rules Committee, where he was making a final push for his bipartisan compromise measure.

“I think the only thing worse than a clean extension without any income limits and any reforms – because it’s not a perfect system. The only thing worse than that would be expiration,” Fitzpatrick said Tuesday night when asked about the Democratic push. “And I would make that decision.”